5 Hotels Helping Travelers Do Good in a Big Way

Travelers can do twice the amount of good when they book with select Kind Hotels this holiday.

The holidays are the busiest long-distance travel periods of the year for visiting family & friends and for leisure vacays.AAAprojects that 48.7 million Americans journeyed 50 miles or more from home this Thanksgiving, an increase of one million travelers compared with last year (partly due to gas prices being the second-cheapest in nearly a decade). This represents a 1.9 percent increase over 2015, and the most Thanksgiving travelers since 2007. With increased travel comes a huge opportunity for travelers to vote with their travel dollars to make a positive difference by supporting businesses focused on social and environmental impact.

photo // Toa Heftiba

Luckily for conscious adventurers and mindful jet-setters, Kind Traveler has teamed up with five hotels across the U.S. to match traveler donations when they book on KindTraveler.com. Participating Kind Hotels include Virgin Hotels Chicago, Hotel G San Francisco, The Benjamin in New York City, Two Bunch Palms in Greater Palm Springs, and Lumière Hotel in Telluride (coming soon). Each hotel will match donations to 28 local and global charities, providing travelers an opportunity to do twice the amount of good when they book with participating hotels on Kind Traveler.

The campaign will run through January 2, 2017, however guests can book any stay dates during the promotion (it's never too early to start thinking about a NYE getaway, a 3-day weekend escape on President's Day or perhaps a special Valentine's Day adventure).

A $10-dollar nightly donation to the traveler’s choice of 28 local and global charities unlocks special hotel offers to book directly with hotels. The participating Kind Hotels will match donations until the donation matching maximum has been reached or until the campaign expires (donation matching maximums are set between $500 and $2500 per hotel). 100% of the donations raised are given to charities, making this a win-win for the traveler, charity, and hotel.

On a local level, when a hotel joins the platform, Kind Traveler helps them to facilitate an alliance with a local charity. This gives travelers the ability to address hyper-local issues through its network of local charities including Surfrider Foundation Miami Chapter, Feeding South Florida, Boys & Girls Club of Hollywood, 2 Hands 2 Cans, Boys & Girls Clubs of Coachella Valley, Pacific Marine Mammal Center, Donda’s House, StreetWise, City Harvest, Community Housing Partnership, San Francisco SPCA, Telluride Foundation, Raymond Gardiner High School Turks & Caicos, and Fundación Brisas.

DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT HOTELS

While Double Your Impact hotels will match donations to all 28 charities on Kind Traveler, each has a locally aligned charity giving travelers an opportunity to make a local impact. By giving back locally, travelers can have confidence that their travel dollars are being put to work to make a positive difference locally.

HOTEL G: SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

Hotel G, a block from Union Square, is a one-of-a-kind San Francisco boutique hotel, characterized by classic details (like original 1908 wood flooring) combined with contemporary eco-luxury (yes, please). If ever there was a Kind hotel, evidenced by organic ingredients, natural toiletries, a recycling program, and energy and water-efficient fixtures (and that’s just the beginning), this is it. You could say that the Hotel G puts the “g” in giving!

Local Charity: San Francisco SPCA

Mission:
As founders of the No-Kill movement, the missionof SF SPCA is to create a community where every animal has a loving home.

Why is it important?
The epidemic of animal homelessness is pervasive and constant. Overpopulation, barriers to veterinary care, and pet behavioral issues leave animals abandoned and alone – and in grave danger as a result.

How do they do it?
SF SPCA battles the cause of homelessness by preventing overpopulation, rescuing all cats and dogs, and educating the community to encourage animal advocacy.

When you think travel innovation and the brands that exude it, you have to think the Virgin brand. Virgin and innovation go together like peanut butter and jelly, and the Virgin Hotels Chicago is no exception. The first of its brand, the Chicago hotel is housed in the old Dearborn Bank building – where history and contemporary cool meld together. Whimsical design touches compliment vintage flair, like the original and decadent ceiling tiles adorning the hotel lobby. Innovation and fun is the name of the game, from trendy bars and rooftop DJs, to a library stocked with Marvel comics and candy.

Local Charity: Donda’s House

Mission:
Inspired by the educational legacy of Dr. Donda West (the mother of Kanye West), the mission of Donda’s House is to provide premium arts instruction to youth in a safe, creative environment that inspires and empowers.

Why is it important?
Arts and music programs are routinely cut in schools facing budget deficits and schools in underserved communities that directly benefit from access to safe environments and developmental opportunities.

How do they do it?
Its educational program, Got Bars, is known as its signature music/lyric composition and performance program. Participants are selected through an application and audition process. Participants focus on creative writing, health & wellness and studio recording.

The Benjamin Hotel is centrally located amidst the bustling Midtown Manhattan. Recently renovated, the original architecture from 1927 combines historic design with contemporary charm. It’s like the James Bond of hotels. Wellness takes center stage, where the motto is for guests to “be at your best.” That motto of being at one’s best could equally be said of this Manhattan hotel, where impeccable service is woven through its five tenants of restful sleep, nourishment, exercise, personal care, and inspiration. Dare we say a match made for heaven?

Local Charity: City Harvest

Mission:
The mission of City Harvest is to end hunger in communities throughout New York City.

Why is it important?
Nearly 1.4 million residents of New York City are struggling with hunger, including 420,000 children—that’s more than the population of Miami! City Harvest will rescue 55 million pounds of healthy food that would otherwise go to waste this year and deliver it to help feed New Yorkers in need.

How do they do it?
City Harvest’s fleet of 22 trucks is on the road 7 days a week rescuing food and delivering it to 500 soup kitchens, food pantries and other community food programs that hungry New Yorkers turn to.

A short drive from Palm Springs International Airport (and only two hours from Los Angeles), Two Bunch Palms is located in the heart of the desert, but surrounded by lush flora, making it a modern-day oasis. Newly renovated, the health- and wellness-inspired Two Bunch Palms recently became the first carbon-neutral resort in North America. Now that’s our type of oasis.

Local Charity: Boys & Girls Clubs of Coachella Valley

Mission:
The club’s missionis to save and enhance the lives of young people of their community, especially those with economic and/or social needs.

Why is it important?
With over 1.2M California students having nowhere to go after school, every day, the club offers a safe haven for children to build successful lives.

How do they do it?
Boys & Girls Clubs of Coachella Valley provides meaningful youth development programs, activities, guidance and mentorship given by caring and qualified staff.

What’s classic, chic, and sophisticated all over? Lumière Hotel in Telluride, Colorado. This lavish resort is the year-round place to be, primely located near summertime hiking trails and ski-in/ski-out access for when the flakes fall (Telluride offers some of the most challenging lift-skiing in the Rockies, and is also known as being the most beautiful, sitting among the continent’s highest concentration of 14,000ft. peaks. While this altitude can be shocking, the hotel is prepped with on-hand remedies to ease you into the high life). Relax into the intimacy of a European resort lodge that’s laid-back vibe is inviting for all: Families, honeymooners, and four-legged friends alike (just alert the hotel ahead of time if you plan to bring your pup).

Local Charity: Telluride Foundation

​Mission:
The Telluride Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life and create a tight-knit community for those who live, work, and visit Telluride, CO.

Why is it important?
Local communities need to take action today in order to maintain long-term prosperity—and Telluride is no exception. The Foundation takes on difficult regional issues that require leadership and risk tolerance as their initiatives, bringing the diverse, local community together to make more possible for all.

How do they do it?
As the fourth most active grant maker in the country, the foundation provides year-round, cash-grant support to local organizations involved in community-based efforts, representing sectors such as education, athletics, health, human services, conservation, the arts, and more. They work with these regional non-profits and community groups to increase their effectiveness, as well as address issues where their support can have direct impact.

What a $10 donation will do:

Help provide graduating seniors with impactful scholarships

(or) Help provide energy assistance to local families in need

(or) Help provide emergency housing assistance to local families in need

Start traveling kindly this holiday and experience how giving and traveling can illuminate your holiday cheer in a deeply meaningful way. Who's booking a room? #TravelKindly

Kind Traveler CEO, Jessica Blotter, is a kindness curator who dreams of a world where people, animals, and the environment are treated with love and compassion. Follow her to discover where kindness can take you and insights on what it means to travel kindly.